Hair Smuggling

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday claimed to have busted a hawala and money laundering racket linked to the smuggling of human hair from India to China via Myanmar, after it conducted multiple raids and froze as many as 139 bank accounts.

Exporters would require permission or licence from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade for sending shipments of hair outside India

The ED has found that racketeers have been exporting human hair to China and other countries via India's northeastern border after considerably undervalueing the commodity. Money was found to be paid via hawala channels, Paytm, and other means.

In another life, Francis Gurahoo might have pursued a career as a hairstylist. But the three dozen-or-so plastic hair rollers stashed in his carry-on luggage weren't meant for luscious curls. Instead, authorities found 34 colorful finches inside those rollers - each capable of producing songs worth thousands of dollars.

Federal agents found dozens of finches hidden in hair rollers inside a duffel bag at John F Kennedy International Airport.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday claimed to have busted a hawala and money laundering racket linked to the smuggling of human hair from India to China via Myanmar, after it conducted multiple raids and froze as many as 139 bank accounts.

Exporters would require permission or licence from the Directorate General of Foreign Trade for sending shipments of hair outside India

The ED has found that racketeers have been exporting human hair to China and other countries via India's northeastern border after considerably undervalueing the commodity. Money was found to be paid via hawala channels, Paytm, and other means.

In another life, Francis Gurahoo might have pursued a career as a hairstylist. But the three dozen-or-so plastic hair rollers stashed in his carry-on luggage weren't meant for luscious curls. Instead, authorities found 34 colorful finches inside those rollers - each capable of producing songs worth thousands of dollars.

Federal agents found dozens of finches hidden in hair rollers inside a duffel bag at John F Kennedy International Airport.